What's the Difference Between the World Wide Web and the Internet?

Happy Internaut Day! On August 23, 1991, users accessed the World Wide Web for the first time, paving the way for the internet that we turn to for the latest and greatest cat gifs.

So here's a question: what's the difference between the World Wide Web and the internet?

To start, the internet is bigger. Much bigger. It's actually a network of networks, connecting millions of computers around the globe. Any of these computers can communicate with one another, so long as each machine is connected to the Internet.

The World Wide Web, however, is a system we use to tap into that internet. Think of it as the method used to access all those cat gifs.

The World Wide Web uses Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) - a language used to transmit data - to access information that lives on different networks. If you're reading this blog post on a browser - Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer - you're accessing the internet via the World Wide Web.